Protegee
by Shadowsonic137
Summary: Dante is starting to tire of his daily routine, until a young hopeless boy falls literally into his path. Dante doesn't want an apprentice. But his shrink says he should try it out. Could this be the fun he's been looking for? Rated for violence language.
1. Spinning, Boredom, Small Talk

Devil May Cry: Dante's Apprentice

It was a clear night, the stars were shining and the moon was half-full, yet it still gave off radiant light. More than enough light for one silver-haired demon slayer who was busy wrapping up his work.

"I'm bored…." Dante said, stifling a yawn with one hand and lazily spinning his sword with the other. Not-so-amazingly, he cut down another three Hell-Greeds in this manner. His sword stopped spinning and he looked at it for a moment.

"You know Dante, that's all well and good, but maybe you'd like to concentrate on what we are doing _now?_" Said his female assistant for the night, blasting a demon out of her way as she did.

"Don't need to!" Dante said laughing, taking his hand and giving his sword another great spin. "I mean look at this! How stupid can these guys be!" Rebellion continued to slash through scores of Hell-Greeds and Sin Scissors. "I mean, they're like jumping into the path of the blade….I- I'm not even aiming!"

"DANTE!" Lady yelled at him. Dante abruptly ended the spin. "Oh, fine." Dante said, grabbing his twin guns. "Ruin my fun why dontcha." Dante proceeded to utterly decimate every remaining demon in the area.

"There, happy now?" Dante asked, annoyed. Lady shrugged. "Whatever. I have to get home. Time to give Mom a sponge-bath."

"Eeeewwwwww….." Dante said, an uninvited picture of a nude old lady springing into his head. "Oh god, I bet she's all wrinkley and ev-ery-thing…..!"

"I was talking about by gun you dolt! My mother is dead!" Lady yelled, but still remembered to raise the Kalia Ann for emphasis.

"Oh….right…." Dante said. The image was slow in draining from his mind. He gave an involuntary shudder.

"God Dante, do you pay attention to anything I say?" Dante was busy trying to clear the wrinkles out of his brain and his on-hand remedy for that was to eye the several buttons that came loose from Lady's blouse.

"Mhmn hmn. Yeah, I'm listening…."Dante mumbled in a off-handish sort of way that proved he wasn't listening at all.

Lady looked down at her open blouse and immediately re-fastened it. "Men." She muttered in disgust, walking away. "Devil-man or regular, they're all the same."

Dante caught her arm mid-stride. He swung her around and pulled her in close, looking her dead in the eye. "Lady, whenever you're around, you've got my _full_ attention." He said, finger-walking up her lower stomach.

"Oh stop it." Lady said, protesting and batting his hand away. But giggling was giggling all the same. Dante let her go.

"I'll see you around, Demon." Lady said, smiling and walking off, and perhaps, just perhaps, throwing a little extra sauce into her retreating hips. Which Dante was perfectly willing to accept. After a moment or two of admiration, he broke off.

"So! I'll pick you up at around 8 right!" Dante called as she was about to round the street's corner.

He could hear her laugh. "Only in your dreams Dante! I'm still not desperate enough to date a Demon!" With one more laugh, she turned the corner and was gone.

_'Aah…I'll get her eventually.' _Dante said to himself. _' Now then, what'll it be for dinner tonight? Oh I know! Pizza!'_ He said, smacking his lips and rubbing his hands together.

* * *

After collecting his fee from that last job, the red-clad devil hunter could be seen ascending the few steps to his shop/apartment. Before he could enter however, he heard a loud BANG from the alleyway between his agency and the next building over.

Raising an eyebrow, he leaned over into the alleyway. "Hello!" Dante heard nothing except for his own voice echoing back to him.

Here, Dante was faced with a dilemma. One part of him was curious, and wanted to make sure it was nothing. In his world, loud noises with no source was never anything good.

On the other hand however, he desperately needed a shower. He had sand in places he didn't like to think about. And the last part of him was that part that resided in everybody, the part that didn't give a damn either way and was not helpful at all.

After another second's worth of consideration, Dante decided on the shower. But first things first. He went inside his shop and reached for the phone. If he called for his pizza now, then he wouldn't have to wait. As soon as he got out of his shower, it would be here.

But Dante's planning was in vain. Trish had walked in, carrying identical brown paper bags….groceries! "Put that phone right down bub! You order pizza every night! No more! You need a better diet Dante. Too many carbs can be just as bad for the Son of Sparda as it is for the Son of Joe down the street."

"What makes you think I'm ordering pizza?" Dante asked. He hadn't moved an inch. The phone was still half-way to his ear and was beginning to get the operator loop. _"If you would like to make a call, please make sure you have the right number, and hang up and dial again." _Dante hated the operator loop extremely. At times, he very much wished the operator turned out to be a demon after all.

"What makes you think I'm ordering pizza?"

"What part of 'you have pizza every night' don't you understand?" Trish repeated.

"Well then what do you suggest?" Dante asked, rebounding from the undeniable truth Trish had laid before him.

"You'll eat with me tonight."

"For a suggestion, that sounded a lot like an order. But okay. Where are we going?" Dante asked, intrigued.

"My place" Trish responded easily.

"Upstairs?" Dante asked.

"Yes Dante. Upstairs."

"What, am I picking you up there or something?"

"What, upstairs?"

"Yes Trish. Upstairs."

"Ugh, you moron. Just meet me upstairs in an hour, okay!" Trish told him, carrying her groceries….upstairs.

"Gotcha babe! An hour. Got it."

"And don't forget to shower! You're all sweaty."

Dante's leg took that opportunity to twitch and rub painful against the sand that had found its way inside his near skin-tight pants. He couldn't have forgotten to shower if he had tried.

* * *

Fifty-Five minutes pass. Dante has showered and put on his Diesel outfit for outings. A pair of old jeans, a black t-shirt with a jacket over top. Simple. Dante hears the seconds tick by on his watch as he stands at the foot of the stairs, waiting impatiently.

Four minutes go by and Dante finally begins his ascension. At exactly one hour since Trish's invitation (making it 9 o'clock right now) Dante knocks on her door upstairs. "C'mon in Dante! It's open!"

Dante walked into the room but stops a few paces in. "Wow Trish, you really shaped this place up…." Dante said with a whistle.

When Dante had first bought the property, he himself had been living on the second floor. During his stay he had kept it simple. Tv. Bedroom. Bathroom. A small table, and pizza for dinner.

When Trish had come home with him, with no place to stay, of course he couldn't turn her down. So he moved out and now slept downstairs on the first floor, with all of his previous necessities.

She needed a lot more stuff than he did it seemed. She'd added some plant life here and there, bought carpet for the floor, and the east wall had been replaced with a clear window, (shades included) presumably to see the rising sunset. Trish had even gone as far as getting one of those stainless steel sinks and a brand-new stove opposite it. Which Trish had used to cook the dinner she was setting on the mahogany table in the middle of the floor.

"You're a real Martha Stewart." Dante said, sitting down at the table. And beginning to sample Trish's food. "Don't make me have to put you under house arrest." Dante joked. Trish sat down herself smiling but still said. "Not one of your better ones Dante."

"Yeah, Martha doesn't give me much inspiration….But seriously. Do you even pay rent here? And how'd you afford all this stuff?"

"Yes Dante, I DO pay rent. And what the hell do you think I do with my share of the profits? Sit here and stare at it all day? Do you even pay attention to your bills?" Trish replied.

"There goes that 'attention' thing again…twice in two hours…wow." Dante said shrugging.

"Maybe there's something to that."

"Maybe"

"So, How's life Dante?"

"Whaddaya mean?"

"Just what I said. 'How's life'? You didn't get that?"

"In every conversation you seem to imply that I cannot grasp the concept of the English grammar and linguistics." Dante mentioned.

"Sorry that it seems that way."

"Touche. Its just that you asked 'How's life' like you hadn't seen me in years when you see me every day so…"

"Oh I get it."

"Yeah. Way to say awkward huh?"

"Sorry."

"No prob."

Silence.

"You know, this isn't too bad. What is it again?" Dante asked. After biting into his meal.

"Home-made spaghetti and meatballs." Trish said, as though it was obvious. Which it was….

"You shouldn't have Trish. Thanks."

"Anytime Dante."

"No really, you shouldn't have. Its creepy. Why did you do this?" Dante asked

"Look Dante, Pizza every day isn't a good way to live your life. Besides, it has to get boring."

"Oh don't look so sad." Dante said, noticing Trish's downhearted face. "I was only joking."

"Were you?"

"Mostly. It is sort of creepy."

"Why?"

"Because I didn't know you could cook."

"Right."

"Yep."

"Uh huh."

"Of course."

They went on like that for another thirty minutes by which time they had both finished their dinners. Soon Dante was back on the landing outside of her room.

"Now I don't want you to have Pizza too much anymore okay? Just come up here whenever you need anything." Trish told him.

"Actually, I could go for a little vanilla I-Scream right now." Dante said with a grin.

"I don't think I have any….." Trish paused. "Oh. Ha-ha very funny." She said when the meaning caught up with her. A moment's silence. "That was seriously bad Dante. Horrible."

"Yeah I know—"

"No, you should go."

"Huh?"

"Like right now. Just go to bed. I'll just chalk it up to you being tired…but that was like two bad clichés in a row. Just leave."

Dante turned on the stairs and said good-night. But before Trish had closed the door he said. "Trish!"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"Anytime Dante." She said with a smile. Then she closed the door.

_'She'd make the perfect match for Vergil if he was still here.'_ Dante thought as he descended the stairs. _'She would know just how to keep him in check.'_

* * *

Well, that was the first chapter. Hoped you enjoyed it, even though it was a little slow. The ice-breaker always is ya know? The next one should be better.

Don't forget to review. I can't do anything if you don't tell me what was good and bad in the first place.


	2. The Good Doctor

Wow. Nearly ten reviews in less than 24 hours. I'm touched really. So touched that I had to post early, and reply.

Well, thank you all for your esteem-boosting reviews. But as to questions about Vergil...I was actually going to have a side-story type thing about him to be introduced this chapter, but I decided against it. I might make it a full-story though. If you're interested I'll tell you the name when I've decided.

And sorry, but I do have to single one person out. Amara-chan. I can tell we are going to have a great fun-filled exciting relationship. It's already started off so fresh and intriguing! I'm a male, love. 15 year old guy going to be a junior in High school this year. (next week in fact) Sorry for any confusion.

Now then! On with the show.

* * *

Dante sat in his usual position. Leaning back in his chair, legs crossed and feet kicked up on his desk. He had his arms crossed and was staring intently at the phone, willing it to ring.

"How long has it been?" Trish asked filing her nails at a chair near-by.

"Five minutes." Dante muttered without taking his eyes from the phone.

Trish shook her head. "Without blinking?"

"Yep."

"Dante, that's not normal." Trish told him. Dante snorted. "Neither is that" he said, gesturing to the wall behind him where twin swords (one red and one blue) were snoring peacefully.

"True" Trish said. She went back to filing her nails. "What was the last call about again?" She asked, referring to five minutes ago, before Dante had started his abnormally long stare.

"Lost cat." Dante muttered darkly. "And no password." Trish laughed. "What's so funny?" Dante asked her, without moving his head or eyes. He still hadn't blinked yet.

"Maybe you should consider actually stating what you _DO_. In the phone book it just says "Odd-Jobs". Not "Demon-Slaying." Its not very clear to people what kind of odd jobs you are looking for."

"Trish," Dante started, chuckling despite himself. "If I had said anything clearer they would think I'm insane. Then the only calls I would be getting would be ones from the police, stating that they had a warrant."

"You could say exterminator." Trish said thoughtfully. There was another loud BANG outside. "Speaking of exterminators…I think I'm going to go call one. Those are probably rats outside." Trish said, getting up and moving toward the phone.

"Aww Trish! Don't tell me you're afraid of rats!" Dante said tsk-ing and shaking his head. His eyes didn't move though, still glued to the phone Trish was hovering over.

"NO Dante. But humans are. Maybe that's another reason they are staying away." Trish explained to him. Dante acted hurt. "That's a low blow Trish. And I thought we were getting along so well."

Trish ignored him. "Oh and Dante. I took the liberty of calling your psychologist." Dante blinked, his trance was broken.

"What the hell did you go and do that for!" Dante exclaimed. "Trish! Damn! I don't need any shrink." Dante took his feet off the desk and deepened the crossing of his arms. Trish could almost imagine the storm-cloud over his head as the Devil-hunter sulked.

"Dante…" she said softly. "Most people see doctors to check if they are crazy or unbalanced. We both know that isn't the case here. Its great that we finally found someone who believes that too."

"If we all know that I'm not crazy, then why did you call in?" Dante asked, his tone still sulky.

"For the past two weeks you've been moaning and groaning about boredom and whatever else. You almost look depressed." Trish said pointedly.

Dante didn't say anything for a moment. "Trish. We both know that I don't get depressed." Dante said, trying his best to keep up a feeble defense.

"Whatever." Trish said throwing up her arms. She knew that there was no point in arguing anymore. "Your meeting is at two. And she said that if you are late, she'll just come up here."

"Two!" Dante said aloud, looking at the clock on the wall. "That's only an hour! And it takes 45 minutes to drive there already!"

"Then fly." Trish said simply.

"Aah. It wastes too much energy." Dante got up. "Dammit. What a hassle. The bike's still in the shop right?" He didn't bother for the answer he already knew. "I'll be back then." Dante muttered unhappily.

"You'll bring your sword with you? And E&I?" Trish asked.

"Of course. Don't go anywhere without them." Dante answered.

"You're paranoid you know that?" Trish told him. Dante blew through his lips.

"I guess that's why I'm going to see the shrink." He walked outside. Immediately a BANG. "Okay. That's it. What the hell _is _that!" He drew his sword (Alastor) and entered the alleyway.

Dante saw nothing at first, but he gave Alastor a squeeze and lightning jumped from the end. This time a frightened squeal came out of something that was definitely not a pig. Dante reached down grabbed some type of cloth and hurled it into the side-walk. Dante suspected that it was a demonic spy from some new enemy he had yet to encounter. (Or at least, he hoped so.)

That's why he was surprised when a human teenager ended up sprawled over the concrete. Dante sighed and replaced his sword. "So you're this rat huh? Alright kid. Who are you and how long have you been back there? You smell like my dumpster."

The teenager was a scrawny kind of kid. After he had gotten over the shock of being flipped and thrown he stood up and nursed his skinned elbows. But he soon looked up at Dante and began to stammer; "M-my name is V-v-Vance. And…you're HIM! You're Dante!"

Dante raised an eyebrow. Scrawny might have been an understatement. This kid looked about 16-17 years old. He obviously didn't get out enough or get enough sun, his skin was a pasty bleach looking color. He wore thick glasses, which amazingly weren't broken. His dark hair was untidy and he seemed to hunch over a bit.

"Yeah…Dante's the name….Look what do you want? I'm in a bit of a hurry."

"Oh…uhm..right. I came here to be a demon-slayer." Vance said after a moment's hesitation.

"No." Dante said simply, then walked to his garage and opened it. Vance followed. "No? But why nooott!" Vance asked. Dante came close to laughing. This kid had a bit of a Woody-Allen voiceover going for him.

"For one. I don't like whiners. Which is what you are doing now. Secondly, I don't like wanna-bees. Which is what you are now. And lastly, I don't take on apprentices. Never have, never will." Dante told him.

"Now then, go inside and tell the blonde lady to cancel the exterminator. Here," Dante said, searching his pocket. "I'll even give you five bucks for your troubles." He handed him a crisp five-dollar bill. "Ooh, and that's a good one. I'd hold onto that."

Dante got into his car, a silver corvette with a black roof. Normally he'd be riding his bike but it got trashed a few weeks back….

"See you kid." Dante said, then pulled off without another word as Vance looked on incredulously.

"Kid's these days. All think they can just be a Slayer like that." Dante said a few minutes later, with a snap of the fingers. "Actually, he's the first one….And how the hell did he find out I was a Demon-Hunter anyway?" Dante pondered it for a moment before shoving it out of his mind.

"I'll let the psychologist figure it out. She's supposed to solve my problems right?"

* * *

Dante arrived right on time. He walked up to the house, but paused before reluctantly knocking. '_Well, I'm here now…. She'll be happy at least.'_ Dante thought. The door opened and immediately his cheerful doctor greeted him.

"Dante! Eet has been too long!" She said, reaching up and giving him a peck on both cheeks.

Dante smiled despite himself. "Hello Lucia. Miss me much?" He walked through the open door and Lucia shut it behind them. "Say, did you do something to your hair? You look different." Dante commented.

Lucia's eyes flashed. "Ah! Yes, yes I have. Do you like it? I know it isn't much, but still…."

"I do like it." Dante said genuinely. All she had done really was put her braid behind her, instead of letting it drape over the side. Dante found that he preferred this way, it confirmed that she did in fact have two eyes.

She was also wearing a pin-striped suit. "You're uniform I take it?" Dante stated. Lucia looked at her sleeve.

"My costume for working at any rate." She said. "But I do still enjoy a good hunt every now and then. Where 'ave you been Dante? I 'aven't had a call from you en weeks!" She said, her accent growing more noticeable.

"Sorry. You know I'm a little edgy when it comes to doctors…." Dante said, collapsing onto a couch.

"You don't trust me?" Lucia pouted. Dante laughed. "Don't act like that. You know for you I make an exception."

"Well then, I should say eet's time to get started!" Lucia said, sitting in a chair opposite Dante. "Tell me, what has changed in your life. Or, what is new?"

"Well, I'm not entirely sure why I'm here. All that's changed is that I'm really bored these days." Dante said, resting his head back and closing his eyes. "Trish says she's worried about me."

"Ah, she is a good woman Dante." Lucia commented, sipping on tea that Dante had not noticed before. "You should seriously consider settling down. Perhaps a woman in your life is exactly what you need."

Dante shrugged that off. "I have women in my life. You, Trish, Lady…you've met her right? And Jasmine of course."

"Jasmine?"

"The waitress at the local bar."

"Oh, right. The college freshman." Lucia said pointedly.

"Hey, its nothing serious. I just see her a lot because I like that bar. Great booze. And she gives me drinks on the house because I saved her life and all." Dante added as a side-note.

"That's just it Dante. None of your relationships are serious. You keep us all at arm's length. Even when you are flirting, we know it isn't for real." Dante looked up. Was that a trace of bitterness in her voice?

"Besides," Dante continued, trying not to worry about Lucia at the moment. "I'm still too young to have anything so serious."

"That raises an interesting question Dante. Exactly how old are you?"

"Old enough to know I'm still young." Dante said with a smile.

"Fine then. Eet is obvious you do not wish to talk on that subject any more. How's the business?"

"Booming. I've even got a stalker now." Dante said in a slightly sarcastic voice. Lucia asked him to continue. "His name's Vance apparently. He's been living in the alleyway next to the Agency for about a week. I just met him today. Said he wanted to be a Hunter." Dante snorted. "Yeah right."

"Where is he now?" Lucia asked, interested. Dante shrugged. "I told him to go home. And he better be there by the time I get back."

"If you see him again, you should accept. Since you won't decide on a companion…perhaps this will provide the challenge you seem to require."

* * *

When Dante got back to the Devil May Cry agency, it was already dark. After his talk with Lucia, he had gone to a movie to mull things over. Even right now he couldn't remember the name of the flick.

'_I'm the only guy I know who choose a movie to sit and brood.' _Dante parked the car in his garage and locked it up. Then he entered Devil May Cry to find Trish eating popcorn and watching t.v. "How was it?" She asked.

"Not too bad. Lucia says that—" Dante was cut off as a growing light shone in his face through the office window. "No." Dante said, suddenly striding toward the glass. "No. NO. NOOO!" But it was too late. Dante was smashed to the floor as half a ton of steel usually referred to as a motorcycle came crashing through his office.

As the dust began to set and Dante and Trish pulled themselves from the rubble, Dante took a quick survey of the place. Strangely, the sofa was undamaged, but his desk was now in splinters and the old-fashioned phone he used was buried under brick and wood.

"Why! WHY! WHY THE HELL DOES THIS ST ALWAYS HAPPEN TO MY OFFICE! &$#$($#!" Dante howled in rage and let out an endless stream of curses so violent he had to dip into the demonic language since English did not have swears enough.

"WHO DID THIS! WHAT IGNORANT FOOL WOULD DARE DO THIS TO MY OFFICE….AGAIN!" Dante frantically looked around for the culprit, and found Vance staring meekly from outside. "You!" Dante breathed death into the air. "YOU!" Dante snatched up Alastor and advanced on the boy.

"Why would you do this!" Dante screamed, seizing the boy by the collar and carrying him with one hand closer to the scene. "GOD DAMMIT! What! Does everyone just think its cool to go and total my shop again and again and again! Oh, we need Mister Dante on a case! I know! Let's go ram a Hummer through his FREAKING WALL!" Dante exclaimed jerking his arms (and Vance) around for emphasis.

Dante brought Vance to his face. "Tell me why. Tell me why you did this." Vance stuttered for a moment, his voice was lost. "Speak!" Dante commanded. Vance's throat instantly became unstuck.

"I thought, this would get your attention, and let me into your group!" Vance cried. (Literally, tears were flowing faster then the river Nile could ever hope to flow. Dante didn't care.)

"No! No, no, no, no, no, no, NO! This, this right here, this is NOT the way to get on somebody's good side! You wanna know what happened to the first guy who tried this! His name was Arkham. I killed him. Him and his demon posse. I killed them all. Every last one. In fact, the only reason Trish is still here is because she's hot in black leather! And…and…." Dante trailed off. "Is that my bike? It is! That's **_my_** fking bike!" Dante dropped Vance and stood silent for a moment.

"That's it. I've decided." Dante said slowly. "He's got to die." Dante whipped out Ivory and aimed it dead-center at Vance's forehead.

"Dante!" Trish shouted. Dante flinched at the noise for just a moment and pulled the trigger. The white hot bolt shot a centimeter over Vance's scalp. Vance's crying doubled.

"Damn it Trish! You made me miss!" Dante shouted angrily. He quickly relined his aim.

"Dante lower that gun right now! You won't shoot that boy!" Trish yelled.

"I won't?" Dante asked her, pulling back the hammer on his gun.

"No Dante! In fact, you are going to accept him as your apprentice!"

"I am?" Dante asked, unbelievingly.

"Yes! You are!"

"I am." Dante stated, even more unbelieving than before. He lowered Ivory. "Damn you Trish."

"You're welcome." Trish said, huffing. Dante kneeled in close and shook Ivory in Vance's face. "Well, well, well. Lookey here. How lucky can one boy be? You're still alive, and somehow, I've agreed to make your wishes come true. But listen here kid." Dante whispered. "If you ever. EVER pull a stunt like this again, then not only will I kill ya, but before that you'll be missing something very, very dear to you."

Quick as a flash Dante stood, aimed and fired off a round. Trish looked up to see a steaming hole between Vance's outstretched legs. "Dante!"

Dante ignored her and kept his eyes on Vance. "Comprende?"

Vance nodded.

* * *

And here is where the side-story would have gone. Probably named Father & Son. But any way.

Hope you liked this chapter. I couldn't exactly find the right way to tie up the end there, but I think it came out alright. Don't forget to review!


	3. The Rosewoods

Sorry guys, been banned from the pcon account of the fact that I still had summer work to do, and school started today….Anyway, this also means that I just found your reviews…which makes things slightly awkward this chapter as it is too late to change the script or anyhting. So...

Rin, Anonyous.Don't worry. Dante's confused too.And where did Vance come from? No idea.

* * *

"Yes, I understand completely. You can come down whenever you like. Ok, bye-bye." Trish hung up the phone. "That was Vance's parents." Trish informed Dante who was standing outside, taking a better estimate of the damage done. It was the next morning. Vance had been driven home (by Trish of course) the previous night, with a promise that he could return today. 

"They were just apologizing for all the "hassle" he had put us through. They had said that he needed to find a hobby, or a job, and of course he already knew what he wanted to do…." Trish said shrugging.

Dante's eyebrows were raised when he locked Trish in his sights. "Hassle? Hassle? He knocked down an entire wall!" Dante said, throwing his arms into the air. "You know, maybe I should train a Nesfasturris or something to come and guard over my shop." He said, mostly to himself. "I wonder how that would work out….If I could find a really young one, I could just bring it here and let it model its building frame from the shop…but I'd probably have to go back into Hell just to find one. Damn."

Trish placed her hands on her hips. "You weren't seriously just considering that were you? No one in their right mind would get one of _those_ things as a body guard. They attack everything. And besides. What do they eat?" Trish asked, shooting holes in Dante's theory. "You don't even know do you?"

Dante grinned at her. "Hey Trish, here's a thought for you. Maybe you should ask if someone cares before you start rambling off. I'm trying to think of protection for my life."

"Your life?" Trish asked with a skeptic tone.

"Duh Trish." Dante said, shaking his head. "See, not only do I work here, but I live here too. My whole world revolves around this here building. Its my life. And I just can't let it get run-over. At least not repeatedly. And why Trish? Because that would be life-_threatening.­_ And I don't want my life threatened in any way shape or form."

Trish had sudden flash-backs of a large spider with magma for blood. "Uh huh. Right." Trish said. "You are so perfectly safe here."

"It really is a shame I killed Cerberus he'd be perfect…well, technically he's not dead, but what good does a three-pronged nunchuck do for me while I'm away?" Dante said, going back to guard possibilities.

"Let's say that you didn't kill the huge teething three-headed dog. Where would you keep it?" Trish asked.

"Look, babe. I'm more of a big-picture person. I'm not into all the little details." Dante said shrugging. There was a moment or two of silence. "Hey Trish, did you know the average person's attention span is only a few minutes long? Learned that nifty little fact from Lucia. And on that note…." Dante said, sifting through rock and debris. "How the hell did Lucia become a psychologist anyway!"

"What do you mean?"

"She has all those issues herself! Me, me, me. Oh dear! I was created by Arius! Oh send me into the pit of hell where I'll surely die! I'm expendable! Just weird. She constantly contradicts herself, andIs that a piece of my bike?" Dante said, having unearthed a shiny metal with his foot. He kneeled down and picked it up. "Yep."

"Which piece is it?" Trish asked with mild interest.

"One of the exhaust pipes. Damn that kid." Dante said, shaking his head. He still had not worked up the courage to call about an estimate on the repairs for the building. And now, his bike had to go right back to the shop too. If it wasn't wrecked.

"Well anyway I think Lucia is a very good doctor." Trish said, putting in a good word for her red-headed friend.

"Huh?" Dante stood up and scratched his head. "Are you still talking about that?" Trish rolled her eyes and fixed her gaze on a approaching vehicle down the street. "That's Vance and his parents coming." Trish informed. "Now remember, they think that he has applied for a job here."

Dante's head snapped up. "What! I have to **_pay_** this little urchin too?" Trish didn't feel the need to respond. Dante slammed his foot down, cracking the side-walk. "This is such a load of bull…."

"Anyway," Trish continued, ignoring him, "the point is, do you have a plan?" Dante gave a sarcastic laugh in response. "Do I ever?"

Vance's parents had arrived. Trish mentally checked her posture, but Dante was slouched and looked bored as always.

Dante could tell Vance's parent's were not poor. And also believed in class and presentation. They arrived in a black Cadillac that shined in the sun's light. Dante could even see his own reflection as the car drove closer. Dante highly doubted that they had recently washed this car. It was more like, it had never gotten dirty.

Mr. Vance stepped out first after parking. He looked much like a taller version of his son. He wore khaki slacks, and a green golfing sweater. He was slightly less pale than his son, but the same thick glasses and jet-black hair.

Mrs. Vance stepped out next from the passenger side. Shorter than her husband by several inches, she matched Vance's height. She had naturally curly brown hair. Unlike her son and spouse, she was very tanned. Almost to the point of being scary. Dante had to fight hard not to step back and draw his guns.

Finally the last people out of the car was Vance himself and apparently his younger sister. This one had a punkskater look to her and was obnoxiously chewing pink bubble-gum.

As Mr. And Mrs'. noses wrinkled at the sight, but it was the sister that voiced what they were thinking. "This is where you're going to work?" she asked her brother snottily. "It's a dump!" she said, striding forward without bothering to even give the slightest attention to Dante or Trish.

"We're remodeling" Trish said, with a smile and holding out a hand. "My name is Trish."

"Oh! You're the young lady we spoke to on the phone earlier!" Mrs. Vance said taking her hand.

"And you must be the owner of the shop?" Mr. Vance said, striding forward himself with his hand outstretched toward Dante. Dante looked at the hand for a moment, then modeled it into a fist and pounded it with his own. "The name's Dante."

Mr. Vance looked at his fist for a moment then put it in his pocket. "Er…yes. I'm Vance's father, John Rosewood."

"Sup'!" Dante said simply. Trish's smile was getting more and more strained by the second.

"So…Dante…What exactly do you do here? Your ad in the Yellow Book isn't exactly clear." Mr. Rosewood told him. Trish's real smile returned and her eyes sent a vicious I-told-you-so to Dante.

"Well, we do pretty much whatever we're called in to do. We only take certain jobs, but none of them are too dangerous, mostly heavy lifting or cleaning out places and what not."

"Then what are all these swords and stuff back here on the wall?" Sister asked. Dante shrugged. "What can I say. My best friends are the owners of a Halloween store."

"And what are the wages paid?" Rosewood asked. Dante shrugged again. "It's based on the number of jobs, you get your cut from them, and they are all compiled together at the end of two weeks."

Rosewood raised his eyebrows. "That doesn't seem too stable." He said sternly.

"The work does require a little bit of faith." Trish said.

Rosewood nodded, and asked for some time alone with his son, while the Mrs. and the sister took a tour of what remained of the Agency. Vance and his father soon returned.

"When does he start?" Rosewood asked. Dante smiled at Vance. "Oh you can leave him here today so we can test him out and all. The 'remodeling' is done by us ourselves. We do it a lot."

Rosewood seemed about to protest but Vance had already left his side and begun picking up bricks. "I guess we'll be back in a few hours." Rosewood said, as sister and Mrs. got back into the car.

"See you around" Dante said. The Rosewoods drove off. "Vance" Dante called. Vance was immediately at attention. "Who was that girl with you?"

"My sister sir. Her name's Sarah. She's 14."

"That explains the attitude. And don't call me 'sir'." Dante said, walking to his room.

"Wait! Sir!" Vance called. "When does my training begin?"

"When the remodeling is done." Dante answered.

"When will that be?"

"However long it takes you to finish." Dante told him before disappearing into his room. Vance looked defeated, but Trish placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll get him to work too."

Vance smiled.

* * *

Review. Slightly more slow than the last chapter...sorry. 


	4. The SRS

A little slow updating (for me anyway.) Enjoy.

* * *

"Alright! Today, you start on the road to demon-slaying." Dante said. Vance was sitting cross-legged on the floor as Dante wheeled out a newly bought chalkboard. The repairs to the shop had taken about a week. Dante had been forced to helped out, though not by Trish. The local police didn't seem to like collapsed buildings overflowing into the sidewalk for some reason.

"First things first!" Dante said, looking over at Vance one more time. "You have got to lose the Harry Potter look." Vance opened his mouth to protest but Dante shot him down. (Figuratively speaking). "No buts! The untidy black hair, the thick glasses…you even have bright green eyes! And buddy, by the time you're done, you'll have a scar." Dante said with a chuckle.

Vance visibly swallowed, but he listened. "Good." Dante said, taking note that the kid was still serious about the matter. "No self-respecting devil-hunter looks like the world's favorite geek. Now, I'm not exactly sure what to get you…." Dante said thinking. "We'll worry about the real clothing later. But now, all you need is a dark t-shirt and some black sweatpants. And from now on, you wear contacts."

"I thought that the whole dark and dismal idea related to demons was just stereotypical." Vance told Dante.

"Listen kid, every stereotype begins with some truth, otherwise it obviously wouldn't exist. For instance! Blondes go on and on about how the world thinks they're stupid and its not fair. But! If the blondes stopped walking into doors, the world would stop thinking that, right. The truth here is, that dark clothes cover up the blood when it gets on you. But if you want, go ahead and wear white. See what happens then."

Vance shook his head. Dante continued. "Now then. We have come to the real beginning." Dante flipped the chalkboard over and on the other side were notes written across it. "Forget everything you've heard about devil-hunting. I'm here to show you the fact. And the fact is, that devil-hunters are not cool because they are strong, but strong because they are cool."

Dante tapped the chalkboard with his sword, indicating the large letters at the top. They read; 'SRS'.

"Welcome! To the Style-Ranking System. Developed by yours truly. From now on, everything you do will be monitored. Trash-talking, gun-slinging, food preference…don't give me that face!" Dante shouted at the skeptical Vance. "Almost everything can be tied to the SRS. In order to pass the training and receive your graduation token, you will need to work up to at least a 'B' rank. I'll be the judge of course."

"Graduation token?" Trish asked, coming down the stairs. "You've actually put thought into it Dante?"

"Yeah I suppose so…if I'm going to do this then I might as well make it professional." Dante said shrugging.

"Thank you sir." Vance said with an enormous smile. He took this 'graduation token' development as his first real proof of acceptance.

Dante sighed and shook his head. "Don't do that kid. That's called 'beaming'. Only nerds, little children and British people 'beam' when they smile. That stops today. And for the love of God! Don't call me sir!" Dante kicked the chalkboard away while Vance's smile faltered.

"Alright. For now we are done with writing and the technical stuff. Now we begin practice. You 'beam' so far. Now we are going to work on your grin, and eventually, at higher levels, the all-powerful smirk." Dante said. Trish scoffed in the background and Dante whirled on her. "Trish. Have faith. You know not the raw power of the smirk."

Dante turned back to Vance. "Now then, show me what you've got." Vance seemed to concentrate hard for several moments, before resurfacing with a meek curling of the lips.

Dante stared at him, before exploding. "What the hell is that! That is not a grin!" Vance shrunk back at his voice. "See that! A grin is fearless. It shows that you aren't worried even if you are scared to death! It lets you stay cool under extreme conditions. Without the grin, you can't be a Devil-Hunter." Trish sighed again. Dante corrected himself. "At least not here. Now! Do it again!"

They practiced all day, from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Apparently Vance was on vacation, he had 2 uninterrupted weeks before he went back to his High School as a Senior. Dante's first goal was to send him back with some form of confidence, though he did not tell Vance this.

Vance went home that night with his cheeks burning.

* * *

"Alright kid." Dante said. It was the next day, Vance's house. His parent's were at work and his sister was out with friends. Dante had decided that it was time to check out what Vance was all about. As he expected, it was pretty bad.

Star Wars posters on every wall, miniature toys that he had put together, comic books the toys came from, airplane models, a t.v and PS2 in the corner. And, the worst was…a Harry Potter sleeping bag tucked away in the closet.

"You know all this has to go right?" Dante said in a slightly pointed manner. Vance's eyes immediately grew wide and he rushed to the table where his toys were "Not my toys! They're priceless. Take this Mega-man here." Vance said, lovingly picking up and cradling the blue figure. "Its limited edition, mint-condition. Do you know how much this is worth?" Vance asked, waving the blue bomber in Dante's face.

Dante slapped him.

"I'm going to say this once, and only once. You are a senior in two weeks. The toys have to go. And I'm not talking about storing them away someplace safe either. You either give them away, sell them or destroy them. We want no trace of Mega-man in here. Got it?"

Vance, rubbing his cheek resentfully said nothing. He was starting to think that this had been a very bad idea. Dante was mean in person, and didn't seem to like Vance at all.

"I'm not mean. I'm just unexpectedly strict. You wouldn't tell by looking at me in action though." Dante said from nowhere while inspecting Vance's DVD stack. "And I'm not reading your mind either. I can just tell from the look in your eyes so don't freak. I hate kids that freak."

Vance, who had been thinking exactly that at that exact moment, kept silent until Dante spoke again. "Vance, really. Why do you of all people want to be a demon-slayer? You are so obviously not cut out for it I couldn't force a laugh. You're human, you don't look as though you've done a push-up in your life. We'll test your sword skills out tomorrow, but I doubt you have any. Why?"

Vance took a moment to answer, before deciding to tell Dante the truth. "I'm tired of being ignored by everyone."

"Ignored?"

"Yeah. I don't even get pushed around, they just treat me like I'm not there. You don't know what that's like!"

Dante thought for a moment. "You are absolutely right. I have no idea what that feels like."

"I want to be stronger so at least they notice me a little, you know? And so I can defend myself if I had to. And…" Vance mumbled for a moment, unsure to continue. "There's this girl…"

Dante clapped his hands together. "Now we've hit the real reason! There's a girl involved huh? Of course there is. There's always a girl. Boy am I relieved, I was starting to think you were gay." Dante didn't feel a shred of guilt at Vance's shocked face. "You know, rambling off about wanting attention and all…but you really just want hers so its all good."

Dante jumped to his feet (he had been sitting on Vance's bed.) "It all makes sense. Well Vance! You've come to the right place. From now on, your training will be all about Love and War. How to get the girl you want, and how to kick any demon's ass that gets in your way! For no one knows more about the opposite sex than me."

Dante took another look around the room. "But this is going to take one hell of a job. A lot of hard work. You sure you're ready?"

"Yes….Dante." Vance said, remembering not to say 'sir'.

"Great! Then as long as you are willing, I, Dante son of Sparda (somewhere on the Earth, lightning crashes), hereby swear to teach you all you need to know in the ways of the Devil Hunter. Now, after taking this oath, I must prepare. Meet me at the Agency first thing tomorrow. Your work is done for today."

And with that, Dante swept out of the room leaving Vance behind in a state of uneasy wonder. This couldn't possibly turn out well…could it?

* * *

Review. 


	5. Shopping

"Alright, a sword. Let's see..." Dante, Vance and Trish were back at the DMC. Dante was busy rummaging through old boxes and storage for a sword while Vance and Trish looked on in interest.

"Uhm, Mister Dante? Why can't I just use one of those?" Vance asked, pointing at the numerous weapons posted on the walls.

"Because they would all overpower you and lead to your soul's damnation." Dante said without looking up. "Most of those weapons were demons of some form or another...and they don't really like to be touched without their permission...OW!" Dante stop rummaging and started sucking on a finger.

"How did you ever survive all these years Dante? You've just pricked yourself on a nail!" Trish said shaking her head.

"Oh shut up woman!" Dante shouted, annoyed. "What the hell are you even here for? Do you do **_anything_** around here? Go clean something!" he said waving her off.

"Tsk, whatever." Trish said before heading back to the front room. Dante turned back to his searching.

"Er, permission?" Vance asked Dante's back. Dante shrugged. "Usually some sort of demonic explosion or a fight before-hand. Or worse. In Alastor's case, it enjoys to impale people through the chest first." Dante shot a scowl at the currently tame sword on the wall. "It is a very fortunate since it shoots lightning bolts or else I would have just thrown it to the sea by now."

Vance shuddered. "Yep, what you need is a regular old-fashioned non magical sword. And I don't seem to have any. Oh well, its off to the store for us. You need some fire–arms too."

"You do know I'm only 16?" Vance asked him timidly. Dante swore. "Look kid, do you want to be a hunter or not! Grow some freaking balls man! And you wonder why you have self-esteem issues..."

Dante brushed past him. He was in a bad mood now, once again beginning to regret taking Vance on. But that wasn't even the main reason. His finger hurt, after all! But does anyone care? Nobody.

"Trish! Going for a supply run! Where's the local broker?" Dante called also heading to the front room and grabbing Rebellion along the way. Vance followed closely, wondering what was going on.

"You have the worst memory I've ever seen Dante. Its not like the place moves every few hours. It's still a few miles down the road in the Lane. It should be Ralph's shift too." Trish said, filing her nails.

"Do we have any vehicles left that _haven't_ been sent through a wall?" Dante shrugged on his trenchcoat as Vance shook his head. "You're never going to let me live that down are you?"

"Not in your life kid."

* * *

Dante pulled into the darkened space known as "The Lane". Here, it was perpetually dark, with just barely enough light to make out indistinct shapes. However in the shadows, shone one, statue?

"Dante? Why is that statue glowing?" Vance asked, uneasy in the silent dark. Dante laughed. "You don't even know the God of Time when you see it? You have a lot to learn." Dante walked up to the golden statue and activated it.

The lion's head said some gravely words that Vance didn't understand and suddenly they were standing in a market place.

"Where are we?" Vance asked, automatically stepping up next to Dante and reaching for his arm. He stepped away after receiving Dante's glare.

Dante started walking. The marketplace was filled with busy customers. Though, there were no humans to be seen. Demons of all kinds, (though generally mid-to-higher ranking demons as they were the only ones with enough intelligence to communicate and bargain) were visting small shops that resembled lemonade stands only slightly bigger and made out of wood, as opposed to card-board and whatnot.

"The God of Time transports you here." Dante said, speaking to Vance who was fighting off a panic attack. "Generally, the statues hold rare goods for purchase through the Red Orbs. However, the statue we just used was one of the originals, instead of the copies you see so often elsewhere.

"The demons use this place as...well...you see what they use it for." Dante said gestering to the shops. "This place is sort of neutral. For instance, I'm a demon hunter but they don't attack me, and I don't attack them. Nor do they attack each other. But they are still demons, and if one wants to pick a fight then be ready. Ah! Here we are."

They had reached another building. This one actually had doors and windows, like a miniature version of a larger store, like a Borders at the mall. Dante walked inside, where a small, nervous-looking person was sitting behind a counter.

_Not a person_ Vance reminded himself. _A demon in human form. _Vance kept himself on his guard, for once not intending on relying on Dante's strength if anything were to go down. Props to the trenchcoat wearing half-demon, but not everybody was so lucky. And frankly, Vance was beginning to doubt his hero. The man was obviously an idiot.

"Ralphie! Long time no see man! How's the business?" Dante asked cheerfully. 'Ralphie', the small figure at the counter, was a weasel kind of man, literally. If one could get a ferret to stand on it hind legs and grow to about 5 feet tall and evolve thumbs, that would be Ralphie, or at least one of his early ancestors.

"Dante! Dante Sparda! My favorite customer." Ralphie said, nervously his little eyes darting across the room. "Perfect timing too. We just got a brand new shipment of old-fashioned gear. Some of our stuff even goes back to the War!"

"Wow bud. It looks like business is booming huh? So tell me, what do you got in the way of swords? Nothing to fancy today, just something small and relatively sharp." Dante asked. The ferret-man shrugged.

"I don't know Dante. Since when do you go for the little-league stuff anyway? Why don't you check out this sword over here?" Ralph asked, indicating a shining long-sword. The light it was giving off was warm, Vance was sure that blade was made just for him. "This sword, was of the type used by the old human knights. It will surely let your...profession...easier. It came with armor too, it was part of a set, but all we have left is the chain-mail. I'll throw it in for free if you take the sword and scabbard!" Ralph seemed to be begging.

Vance suddenly knew why. The sword had been used by the old knights, probably for demon-slaying. Ralph naturally wouldn't want an item like _that_ in his front window. Vaguely, Vance wondered why the demon would even have it now.

"Sorry dude. Just need a plain sword for this kid here. Gotta learn to crawl before you can walk with the big boys." Dante said, shrugging. Ralph looked very disappointed, but tended to Dante's request.

After a moment of shuffling around, Ralph tossed a short sword to Dante. "Here. That's all we have." Ralph said with a scowl. "100 Orbs" Dante followed Ralph to the counter and discussed business. Soon the voices between them started to rise but Vance was too busy staring at the gleaming armaments. One particular piece entranced him. A blood-stained axe, it seemed to weave its own aura of darkness, but Vance couldn't pull away. Slowly, he reached out to touch it. A simple touch couldn't hurt...

"Time to go!" Dante said, grabbing Vance by his outstretched arm and also breaking his trance. Dante didn't even seem to notice the bloody weapon that had enthralled his protégée. Dante steered Vance outside.

"What was that back there?" Vance asked. Dante rolled his eyes. "I dunno, he's crazy. Never try to deal with a rodent." He answered, misunderstanding the boy. Vance looked back through the shop's window. It was Ralph who was now staring at the axe. He reached out to touch it, but Vance lost sight of him as they rounded a corner.

* * *

"Trish! Put this in back room someplace will ya?" Dante asked, raising an immense black bag that Vance strangely had not noticed before. Trish came down from her room upstairs. "What am I your maid now too?"

"You live here don't you?"

"I pay rent!"

"I don't think that was the question babe." Dante shook the bag. Trish sighed and took it from him.

"I'm only taking it because I was going to the room anyway. Where's the key? Never-mind, I've got it." Trish left.

"What's in the bag?" Vance asked as Dante switched on the t.v.

"Stuff"

Vance looked at his watch. 6:50. He hadn't realized it was so late. He looked outside. Summer was waning, the days were starting to get darker. "I've got to get back home, its my turn to cook dinner." Vance told the channel-surfing demon-slayer.

Dante looked at him. "You take turns cooking dinner too?" He snorted. "What a dweeb. Go on then. I want to sleep anyway."

Vance left, and Dante slowly got up. "Hey, Trish! What'd you do with that bag!"

* * *

Review. 


	6. Kill me later, read this now

Alright. It's time you guys know the truth. As many of you may have noticed by now, my updates have gotten _considerably_ slower. This is due to the fact that I got accidently locked out of my personal computer. (Forgot the password. Our bad.)

Previously, I didn't think something like this would be a problem. It is. I now have to share the family computer with, well, the family. And my brother is on all the time so its getting kind of pressed. I can't just sit and write for hours anymore. This means I have to work on each story bit by bit. I am so terribly sorry.

From now on, I can only work on one story at a time. The rotation is as follows;

Kingdom Hearts shall be updated next. I haven't updated in forever...and it was my original story out of the latest three. Gotta show some love. A new update will be coming soon.

Following KH, is Hellsing. And following Hellsing will be my newest Devil May Cry story.

Hopefully, I'll still be able to churn the updates out at a reasonable pace. I'll see you all soon.

(And P.S. While you can obviously "review" to this and totally chew me out, which I deserve whole-heartedly. You don't really have to bother. I already know what you are going to say. I mean really? Who the HELL gets locked out of their own computer...)


	7. Chew Your Food

You guys know the deal! Time for a new chapter!

* * *

The clang of clashing steel filled an otherwise empty park. Vance fell back, panting. His arms were on fire, and his idol stood over him smirking. Vance was learning how to fight. 

"Finally!" Dante exclaimed, throwing his arms wide. "We've gotten to the good stuff! No more repairs to anything, no more buying necessities for preparation! Remember when I said all that stuff about you being on your way as a Devil Hunter?" Dante asked, pointing at the pale boy before him. "Well I lied. Now! Now is when you are on your way. Everybody knows a true Devil Hunter lives by his sword. Now get up." Dante said, pointed Rebellion at Vance's throat. "If you are still set on this, then you need some serious work on your sword play."

Vance grunted slightly as he pushed himself to his feet and picked up his sword. The sword was small and rusted and seemed to be incapable of cutting anything for real. At the same time however, it was light and "perfect for a scrawny kid like you" according to Dante.

"Now then. We've only been out here for five minutes and already you've landed on your face. This time when you try your attack, make sure your shoes are tied first." Dante said, leaning back against a tree. Vance felt a sudden surge of either envy or hate (he couldn't tell which one) toward Dante. He made everything look so easy. That plus he got to sit in the trees' shade while Vance himself was out in the 90 degree heat wearing a black shirt and sweatpants.

It wasn't fair.

"Alright then...get into the stance I showed you back at the Agency." Dante told the teenager. Vance immediately relaxed his muscles and let his hobbit-sized sword hang loosely in his grip, giving off a distinct 'I don't give a damn what you think' type of look. Dante shook his head. "No, no, no, you're getting the stances mixed up. That's my ready stance. You'll get yourself killed that way. Plant your feet wide apart. No! _Shoulder _wide you twit!" Dante yelled as Vance came close to entering a very painful horizontal split.

"Feet shoulder wide apart...good." Dante said as Vance did as he was told. "Now drop down a little. Sit into the stance." Vance adjusted himself. "No. Too much. You look to heavy, and if you look heavy you are heavy. In a sword fight you'll need to be in constant motion if you don't want to get diced."

Vance lessened the tension in his body, but still found the overall position awkward. If he tried to move forward or backward quickly it would waste energy and he'd likely get hit. He couldn't fight like this.

Quickly Vance rethought his posture. He moved his left leg out front, and his right leg to the back but keeping them at the same shoulder width. He still wasn't too happy with it, but it was better than it had been. Vance looked at Dante to make sure he hadn't angered him with the small adaption. Vance was surprised to see the Hunter smiling.

"Alright kid. Looks like you've got a bit of a brain in there. I didn't much like the original stance when I learned either. But be careful with that now. That position isn't a perfect balance, and it doesn't have too many redeeming qualities. And your left leg is now a prime target. Alright. Enough positioning. Show me just a good clean slash." Dante pushed off from the tree and stood in front of Vance and his minuscule sword.

Vance brought his hands over his head, then quickly brought his sword down. Dante batted the blow away with one un-gloved hand. "No form. Your hands aren't used to the feel of the blade. It'll pass though. Again." Vance repeated his slash only to have it side-stepped by Dante and countered with a slap to the back of Vance's head. "Too slow. You won't hit anything like that."

Feeling annoyance and frustration building up inside him, Vance tried one last time. This time, he put all of his force and will into the cut, willing to cleave Dante in two if he had to. The blow never finished. Dante parried with his own sword, and knocked Vance's out of his hands.

"Teenagers these days. You think that butter knife could've stood up to Rebellion? Gimme a break." Dante said, keeping his sword point at Vance's neck. "But at least you had your heart in the right place this time. That was a pretty violent swing, off balance, but it was fast and it had a purpose. Rule #1 of fighting: You must be focused in your attacks. If you only fight half-heartedly, or if you are getting distracted by something your blows will go wild and weak. A sword is a weapon. When you swing it, you better have every intention of cutting something off."

Dante yawned and patted his stomach. "I'm hungry. Let's go eat." Vance sighed and sheathed his sword at his hip.

* * *

Dante walked into his shop and reached for the phone. Trish wasn't there to stop him this time. Pizza! Dante called up the Pizza Shoppe and told the person on the end his name. "Righto Mr. Dante! Your regular will be coming right up. 15 minutes tops." Dante thanked him and turned back to Vance. 

"Well what are you still standing here for? You smell. Go take a shower." Dante said, putting a hand to his nose. "Hurry up!" Dante said after seeing Vance's lethargic movement "And where the hell are your contacts? I though we agreed you'd get some."

Vance shrugged. "My Dad said 'You have a job now son. You can get your own contacts.' To quote him directly." Dante swore.

"You still aren't ready for this kid. At least another week's worth of training and a bunch of particularly weak demons, then maybe you can get a taste of what its like..." Dante looked down on his desk and noticed a letter written by Trish. After a moment Dante snapped his fingers. "I got it."

Vance seemed interested. "Got what?" He asked hopefully. "It looks like we've got a job tonight. Some poor mook called in with the password. Normally, I'd see right to it but I'll have to make an exception today..." Dante said, thoughtfully. Then he sniffed. "But first you need to get in the God-Damned shower! What is wrong with you!"Dante said grabbing his nose.

"Oh come on! I don't even smell that bad!" Vance said, sniffing himself. "And you are even all the way across the room!"

Dante glared at him. "Who's the demon here! Me! And trust me buddy! I can smell a whole lot better than you think! GET!" Vance sighed and marched to the bathroom, meanwhile Dante picked up the phone. "Trish! Got the message...right...right...when are you going to be back? Okay then. See you then. Huh? Yeah. We're bringing the kid along. Hope he can handle the ride." Dante finished with a sinister grin.

* * *

Dante and Vance met Trish at the 'poor mook's' place. Actually, it was an Olive Garden. Their manager had called, he was obviously the superstitious type, but that didn't stop him from calling the Police first. Cops were all over the place, and one was moving toward the trio. 

_'Ah...'_ Dante said to himself before speaking aloud, "Hey Chief. Long time no see. What do we got?" dante said to the approaching officer. The man was aged, with stress lines on his forehead and greying hair, but he was not elderly; he had too much fire in his eyes to be brought to that level. One could tell he had seen his share of fights, and learned from them all too. He was a hardened man, but Dante seemed at ease with him.

"Don't talk to me like that you freaky bastard." The chief said, while sticking a cigar in his mouth. Vance had never heard anybody insult Dante before. He wondered how the devil-hunter would take it. He was surprised to find the silver-haired man smiling.

"Now, now, their's no need for name calling Chief. On what basis do I deserve that?" Dante asked the frowning officer.

"Look here boyo. All I know is that a few months ago there was a huge shoot-out down at the bank. Explosions everywhere. My men were injured. From out of no-where, you show up with nothing but a sword and two pistols and, with nothing else, you enter the bank. From the moment I saw you I knew you were an idiot, though I didn't know how you got past my perimeter, and I also knew you were a dead man. Five minutes later the commotion has died and you walk back out without a scratch. "

The Chief gave Dante a hard stare. "And what's more, is that the robber's barely had injuries as well. They all just seemed to mutually surrender. I don't know how you did it, but either way that merits 'Freak' level easy."

Dante laughed. "Well, in that case, I guess I should take it as a compliment. But I've already told you once." Dante said shrugging. "I'm just hot like that." Trish snorted but Vance looked on in awe.

"You might think you're hot stuff, but listen here sonny." The Chief said, stepping up closer. "I don't permit vigilantes in my city. You want to be Bat-man you do it somewhere else. Now. Having said that, this here is Police business and we have it covered." At this moment, serveral cops shouted and along with the sound of shattering glass, three uniformed men were hurtled through a window.

Dante raised an eyebrow at the moaning men who had landed by his feet. "...Right. Well! Luckily for you," Dante said returning his attention to the Chief, "I was hired. Somebody in there called me. And now, its my turn."

"You still need a permit or proof to get in there." The Chief said. "And you aren't any private-eye."

"Actually I am. The owner of the Devil May Cry detective agency. I remember filing some paper or another explaining that when I moved here. Since I was hired by phone, you can't stop me." Dante said, stepping around the wizened chief.

"You still don't have clearance to use lethal force!" The Chief called after him. Dante paused for a second.

"Nope. Not against a human." Dante said, and resumed his walk.

"So what are you going to do?"

"Hurt them real bad if they're human...but I don't think they are!" Dante motioned to Trish and Vance, who hurried to catch up with him. As they approached the building, Vance could make out frenzied shouts and screams from within.

The doors were jammed. Too bad. As Dante stepped over the numerous splinters that was once the fine-looking Olive Garden doors, he took a quick scan around then turned around to Vance and Trish. "Alright. The main reason we're here are those things," Dante said, motioning to a group of floating skulls all of which had a crimson smear on their mouths. Vance's stomach turned. It could be blood, but then again, it could just as easily be spaghetti sauce seeing how so many of the skulls seemed to enjoy dining on the Italian dishes.

"They are called Sargasso. Real low-level demons. They drift to this world all the time. They're weak, but attacking them is tricky and is dangerous if you do it wrong. Mostly, they just break stuff, and if you meet one in a dark alley just remember to dodge and swing. You can only hit them right before, or after they attack first."

Dante clapped his hands and rubbed them together, obviously anxious to begin his work. "Now! The thing you always have to look out for are surprises. Callers forget to mention other demons prowling around all the time. So even if they describe a Sargasso, be ready for something stronger. Like in this case. Our caller forgot to mention that little prick over there." Dante pointed to a hooded figure.

"That's an Auromancer. He seems to be alone, so no problem. But more often than not, they'll gang up on you quick. Finally, you are here to watch and learn. That only. Trish'll cover you just in case, while I go do my thing. Its about time to see what you're getting into now that you've picked up the sword." Dante clapped Vance on the back, knocking loose the boy's glasses. "See you in a bit."

Dante strode off to 'do his thing'. Vance was instructed by Trish to sit at one of the remaining tables and stay quiet. She didn't say it to be mean, but for his protection, and Vance recognized that. Besides, he was eager to see Dante in action again.

Dante made his way for the Auromancer first, whom was busy beginning some sort of spell. With one slash, the demon was dispatched, its hooded head rolling quickly across the floor before dissolving into a red stain. Noticing Dante's presence, three Sargasso moved toward him. They attempted to bite, and it would have caused serious damage had it connected. Vance could see for himself how powerful their jaws were. Dante however, was too fast, too smart.

Dante slid easily out of the way the dangerous teeth instead splitting a solid wood table in two. Dante countered with three quick slashes, however Vance could see his face was the image of concentration. Dante was either having more trouble than the Sargasso than he was showing, or his mind was focused on a different problem. Vance chose the latter and looked at Trish.

The blonde woman in black was also dealing with her own set of heads. She was using Dante's sword, Vance believed it was called Alastor. She wielded it well. Yellow lighting crackled around her form, while blue sparks emitted from Alastor. For the first time, Vance wondered if she too was a demon. It would make sense. As Vance watched them both, he noted how their bodies moved. They were both too graceful, too fluid to be human. Vance had already known a little of Dante's heritage, but he had hoped Trish was human. She could have been more like a role model if she was. Living proof that humans could make it as hunters.

Vance shrugged it off though, and resumed his mental notes. Going back to body movement, it became obvious that dante was by far the superior specimen. Trish fought with apparent ease. Dante fought as though it were as unconscious as breathing. He knew exactly when to move, to roll out of the way of danger, to strike in a vital point on the enemy. He was beautiful to watch. Vance wished silently that he was fighting something other than these weaklings. He couldn't possibly get a true grasp of Dante's ablilities with the hunter fighting something like those skulls.

That's when it occured to Vance what that look on Dante's face was, that look of concentration. '_He's holding back. Is it because of me? Is it for my benefit? I bet anything he would have been done and gone long by now if he was on his own. The son of Sparda...! The power he must have. Maybe I'll see it someday...maybe I'll get power of my own.'_

Dante pushed his sword through the last demon and watched as it faded away, mouth separated from the rest of its body. Dante 'sheathed' his sword (Vance could see no sheath or holders) and sighed. "Well. Not bad for a night's work. Let's head home."

"What about the pay?" Trish asked what was on Vance's mind. Dante waved it away. "I'll deal with it in the morning. The police are all over the place and I don't feel like dealing with them right now. I don't like to stay for the clean-up anyway." Dante tapped Vance on the shoulder. "C'mon kid. It's getting late and its time for your beddy-bye no doubt."

* * *

Dante himself dropped Vance off at his house. After shaking off his parents and climbing into bed, Vance closed his eyes and remembered the fantastic motion of the demons in battle...

* * *

-Next Chapter- Vance begins his Senior school year and his connection to Dante is revealed.

Also, side-note. From here on out the sword fights will be much more numerous and in depth than the one(s) in this chapter. How could it be DMC without a little blade action?

Review.


	8. School's In

Howdy-Ho Everybody!

* * *

Pen and pencil? Check. Wallet, keys? Check. New contact lenses in place? Check. And, off-list, eyes are throbbing because of them. Vance Rosewood silently went over his final preparations. Dante had spent 3 days setting him up for this, the first day of school. Senior year.

_'Hopefully it won't be _fun_ as sophomore year.'_ Vance thought. He was referring to the incident that had set him on this path in the first place. It had all started one year and a half ago...

"Vance! You're going to be late son!" His half-plastic stepmother called. Dante and Trish didn't know about that yet, but Vance felt no need to tell them; everybody deserves a few secrets.

"I'm coming down soon!" Vance called back. He gave himself one more go-over in the mirror. He was wearing dark blue jeans ("Baggy, not saggy" Dante had told him.) A plain white shirt, with a white-striped open blue shirt on top of it. But the contacts still bothered him. He didn't look right without his glasses. With a sigh and a quick decision, Vance removed the contacts and replaced them with his new glasses. They were slim and handsome as opposed to the thick ones he'd been wearing. (His parents had bought them some weeks before, they were supposed to be a school day present) "I guess that worked out after all" Vance muttered under his breath.

Vance made his way downstairs where his younger sister and artificially tanned step-mother awaited. Vance gave an involuntary shudder when she smiled at him; it was eerie to watch. Her face seemed so inflexible...Vance didn't know where she got the muscle to move her jaws.

"Cold, son?" She asked cheerily after seeing the muscle spasm from Vance. He hated it when she called him son. It wasn't that he didn't like the woman, but he was definately _not_ her son.

"A little." Vance lied. His sister snorted into her Frosted Flakes. Vance ignored her. "Well, anyway dear you should probably get a jacket then. Your bus is on the way I can hear it."

A few minutes later, Vance stepped outside with his sister. He took a breath. This was it.

* * *

Dante was bored. He told Trish as much. "Hey Trish! I'm bored." Trish sighed. "That's nice Dante." she replied, not taking her eyes off of her work. Wait, work? "Trish? What is that anyway?"

Trish looked at him. "Its none of your business." This of course only served to intrigue the red-clad devil hunter further.

"Oooh, touchy, touchy," Dante said, sliding up to the blonde for a better viewpoint. "You know friends shouldn't keep secrets from one another." Dante attempted to peek at the manuscript Trish held, but was blocked when she folded the paper up and tucked it away.

"It's a get rich quick scheme" Trish told him. "And you are not involved." With that, she retreated to her room on the second floor and stayed there. Dante sighed and sprawled himself over the couch. He needed to do something. Anything. '_Maybe I should call somebody.'_ He immediately dismissed the thought; he'd need somebody _to_ call first. "God, do I need some friends." He pushed himself to his feet. "Hey! I'm going out!" He called.

No response. He shrugged and picked up his guns and took Cerberus from the wall behind his desk. He used to keep **all** of his weapons on the walls or on a rack, but ever since those idiot gang kids broke in and tried to take Alastor... '_Kids really shouldn't touch things if they can't handle being impaled.'_ Luckily, Dante had been around at the time and managed to grab the lightning blade as it was speeding toward a teen's face. Now he kept the more dangerous items in places less accessible to the public.

Holstering his guns, and clipping Cerberus to his back, Dante picked up his coat and swept out of the door. When all else failed, he headed to the bar.

* * *

At first, Vance let himself sink back into his former habits. His shoulders dropped and he bowed his head, resigning himself to another day of either being pushed around or being ignored entirely. But then Vance stood up straight, and his forced himself to show off a reckless grin (he'd almost mastered it) that announced that he was ready to face the day. He remembered Dante's advice.

_No, no, no. Tomorrow, in fact, this entire week, your objective is not to impress your girl-friend. Your objective is to simply make it through the day and show people that you are not the same person they've taken you for. This year, you aren't going to take crap from anybody...well, except me of course. So, go in there tomorrow and don't let yourself be defeated by yourself. Your problem is confidence. We are going to turn that into your greatest strength. It applies to women, to friends, to enemies, to fighting demons. Now, show me your grin. _

Now that Vance went over it in his mind, flashback style, it sounded incredibly corny for the demon-slayer. It only made Vance believe it more. For Dante to say something detestable like that, it had to be true.

Vance walked through the school doors and took a second to stop and look around. Everything looked great, considering the huge fire that swept through it Sophomore year and all. Most of the school had been damn near burnt down. However, while the news and the school board called it a freak accident, Vance wondered if they had noticed that even the ceramic tile was aflame. Luckily, they had had a guardian angel watching over them.

—Flashback—

Vance had been in Biology class at the time, ignoring whatever the teacher was saying and instead admiring how great his crush looked with safety goggles on. Unfortunately, they had been assigned partners for whatever lab they were working on and Vance never got paired with _Her_.

Meanwhile, he saw some flicker of light out of the corner of his eye. He turned to look at the source properly and saw some kind of orange winged-creature fluttering about the room. No one else seemed to have noticed. Then he looked through the small window on the classroom's door and watched as a dim glow turned into a huge light in the hallway.

It occurred to him that the school was on fire. He raised his hand. "Um...Ms. Jackson, I think the school's on fire." Ms. Jackson stopped at that. She had never known Vance to lie, he was evermore the perfect student, but she looked out of the window and saw nothing.

"Poppycock, Mr. Rosewood. If the school was on fire then we would surely hear the fire alarms by now." Their experiment continued, but Vance was no longer part of it. He was entranced by the dancing light outside the classroom. He was even beginning to feel the heat from the fire. The orange bat had been joined by two more in the classroom; together they danced about, seemingly setting off sparks.

_'I've got to be hallucinating. Apparently that fever I had yesterday hasn't gone away. Maybe I should call the nurse.'_ He was stopped when _She_ raised _Her_ hand.

"Ms. Jackson, I think that kid was right, I think the school's on fire." A few people chuckled and after checking the window, Ms. Jackson waved _Her_ concerns away like she did Vance's.

Vance wondered if _She_ was simply trying to make fun of him. But he saw the worried look on _Her_ face and decided that she saw the same thing that he did. Mustering up his courage, he reached out and tapped _Her_. She spun around and he pointed silently to the corner where the orange bats were. Her eyes widened and Vance watched as the bats touched down onto a counter.

The effect was immediate. The counter caught fire and it spread throughout the classroom as though it were alive. Suddenly, there was motion and sound. The fire alarms were blaring. The school was on fire. People screamed and ran for the door, but the handle was too hot to touch and turn.

The Windows! The students surged toward the outside grounds but was cut off as flame intersected their path. They were trapped. Some of the girls were crying. _She_ was crying too. Vance could have taken this opportunity to run over and comfort her, but he was scared to death as well. He couldn't move.

The flame circled them in a way that made it seem eerily alive. They were all going to burn to death. Then, the man-in-the-red-coat knocked down the door.

* * *

—Present Time—

Jasmine was overjoyed to see Dante again. As Dante sat down at the counter, she slid him one of his preferred drinks, the Bloody-Mary. "How are you Dante?" She asked, affection layered heavily in her voice.

"Not too bad. Its been a slow work week." Dante replied. He sipped on his drink. The alcohol burned down his throat and he shook himself awake. "When do you get your break?" He asked her.

"A couple of minutes." She told him as customers sat down at the bar. "I'll be right back."

"Don't worry about it, go do your thing." Dante said, waving her away. Dante turned on his stool to survey the rest of the pub. There were several groups of extremely nervous looking people that kept glancing at him. '_Demons...the regular low-class.'_ In a few minutes, they would be leaving quickly and quietly, trying to avoid his attention.

Plenty of demons resided here in the human realms, trying to live out their lives as one of them among their unknowing neighbors. Plenty succeeded and were no trouble at all, but they still seemed to frequent various centers of alcoholic activity. It was foolish to act on their demonic urges and steal away a humans life, but some bad habits were hard to break. Demons in the human realm often couldn't resist one of two treats...the human body, or the human soul.

Humans were often ready to make bad decisions at these type of places. Easy pickings.

By now, many of the demons had left the pub. If they were smart, they wouldn't come back at all. If they were stupid, they wouldn't be back for a long time. Jasmine had returned as well, and she sat down beside him.

"So, how's school? You've been keeping your grades up?" Dante asked her without removing his eyes from his surroundings. Now the demons who had genuinely come only for the beer were starting to get a little anxious. Dante shrugged and took his eyes off of them. Some things just liked beer.

"You know I have." jasmine said proudly. "College is easy, and a lot safer than High school was." She said, laughing.

Dante grinned. "Good to hear. We sure as hell don't want a repeat of _that._ In fact, I know another kid who was there too."

"Really?" Jasmine asked, interested. "What's his name?"

"Vance. Rosewood. He starts his Senior year today."

—Flashback—

"So! Lucia's a psychologist now huh?" Dante asked Trish from the passenger side of their brand-new corvette. "That oughta be interesting." Dante said with a grin. He was basically talking to himself. Trish was too busy trying out her car. She made a sharp left turn down some street or another and accelerated. They passed a school and something in Dante's mind twitched.

"Trish! Stop the car!" Trish slammed on the brakes and Dante smashed his face against the dashboard. "Ack!"

Trish whirled at him. "What!" She shouted.

Dante shouted back. "The HELL do you mean what! How about I'm SORRY! You just mashed my head on your dashboard!"

With a frightened gasp she shoved Dante back and inspected her dashboard. "Dante, you better not have left a dent in my car!"

"Oh to hell with this! Just let me out!" Dante shouted angrily. He fumbled for the door handle and tumbled from the car. He picked himself up, slammed the car door shut then leaned in through the side window. "This is why there should be a law against women drivers!"

"Fine then Dante! You can walk home!" With the evil cackle of someone who had gone mad with power, she sped off.

"Wait!" Dante shouted after her. "You've got Rebellion in the trunk!" Too late. She was gone. Dante swore and turned to the school. "I knew it." Dante growled under his breath. The school was aflame, and it got that way through demonic energy. Dante swore again. There were bound to be students trapped inside, and bound to be demons running amuck as well.

And he'd have to handle it without a sword.

Dante strode up to the front door while rolling his sleeves back to his elbows. "I am never going anyplace with that woman again." He promised himself. "All she does is cause trouble for ME!"


	9. Burns and Blades

1

– Still in Flashback –

'_What a drag._' Dante thought after he had smashed down the school's front doors and calmed down a little. Buildings on fire just wasn't his thing. It was the human in him, Dante knew. Being half-demon, mortal flames couldn't hurt him, but still...trapped in a burning building is just a natural nightmare for human beings.

Dante focused on the task at hand and assessed the situation. Their was an enormous amount of fire and smoke, and what was left of the air was pretty dry. _'Well _duh_, Dante. The place is on _fire_. Let's find out something useful.'_ A chorus of screams echoed through the hallways. "That helps."

Dante ran through the corridors, following the screams. He was led to the cafeteria, where all the mayhem of any school was created. It did not help that a bunch of Blades and Flamebats were wreaking havoc. And, like the rest of the school, the cafeteria was aflame. Students were surging for the door, but the demons had already cut them off. The kids fell back but one girl tripped and sprawled on the floor. A Blade raised its claw to strike...! The girl screamed.

Dante caught the Blade's arm on the downswing with his left hand. His right hand was balled into a fist and crashed into the lizard's eye. The Blade screamed in pain and leapt to join its brethren at the opposite side of the room. Dante walked towards the final, unoccupied wall that had doors leading to the outside. He once more curled his fist into a ball and reared back. His punch collapsed the wall and created a hole big enough for a large amount of people to escape quickly.

"Everybody out!" Dante commanded. It took a moment for the kids to get it and Dante shouted again. They didn't need to be told again. A solid wall of teenagers scrambled to escape both the fire and the man-sized lizards.

The Blades, previously confused by Dante's sudden arrival, realized that their prey was escaping. As one, ten Blades attacked the student body, but again Dante was there to defend. He knocked two Blades away while the remaining eight circled him.

Dante understood the idea. The Blades were bred for battle, originally by Mundus himself. They understood the need to deal with the greatest threat first. If they were facing a powerful demon, they might have had the sense to retreat. But they knew this was no demon. They knew it was just a human who was foolish enough to believe that he could take them all. Dante knew the Blades would realize their mistake before the end.

Dante took half a second to turn around and check on the kids, knowing full well that the Blades would attack as soon as he shifted his attention. The lizards did not disappoint him. In the split second he had, Dante saw that the teens were already half done evacuating.

Dante then just-avoided the first lizard's swipe. _'Back to the fight Dante. Remember which demons you are dealing with.'_ Dante said to himself as he dodged a few more attacks. _'You've got no weapons save Ebony and Ivory, which you can't use because of the human kids.'_ Dante ducked a swipe to the face. _'If you were fighting for yourself, this wouldn't be difficult at all. But the name of the game _this_ time is defend the humans. It could get a little tricky.'_

Dante upper-cutted an oncoming Blade and rolled out of the war of a second. Dante was a much of a master of hand-to-hand as he was with any other weapon. However, without a sword or gauntlets, even he was disadvantaged against the demons. This had become solely defensive.

Hand-to-hand was designed for dealing with human opponents. Dante knew this because most demons had claws or some other amazingly deadly item of their own.

Dante checked on the kids. There seemed to be the same amount of students as before. _'Something's happened up at the hole in the wall.'_ Dante noticed a concentration of flamebats had cut off the exit and at the same time a chilling laughter filled the room.

_'On second thought, this could become a problem.'_ Dante noted as the Sin Scythes soared above the mass of humans. Then Dante eyed the curved weapons the demons were wielding and an idea began to from.

Dante whirled and kicked at the lizards that were still trying to maul him. He drove a few back and then he leapt into the air. On the way back down to the ground, Dante crushed a Sin Scythe's mask under his heel and grabbed the weapon it dropped.

Dante hit the ground and swung his acquired scythe. He was pleased to see how easily the weapon could separate an annoying lizard's head from its body.

"Alright!" Dante exclaimed, expertly twirling his scythe over his head. "Time for some payback!"

There were 8 Blades left after the initial swing and Dante had to act fast for three reasons. One; because the school was still very much on fire and probably wouldn't last much longer.

Two; His own scythe wouldn't last long either, now that its master had been destroyed.

And finally, he still had the flamebats and Sin Scythes to deal with.

Dante darted forward and cut down another four Blades by utilizing the scythe's curved blade to attack the demons unprotected backs. Dante felt his weapon shudder at the end of the stroke; it was about ready to give way. _'If I can get the last four in a swing like that last one, I'll be in good shape.'_ Dante reasoned. Soon after he put his plan into action. And got his scythe stuck in the side of the third demon.

Meanwhile the last Blade dashed away from the fight and made its way toward the girl who was still on the floor. She seemed to have stayed there since the beginning. Dante let go of the scythe (which immediately shattered) knowing that the lizard he had wounded was in no condition to fight anyway. He sprinted after the remaining Blade.

Blades, basically being suped-up iguanas, were extremely agile creatures when they wanted to be. Dante found that out back on Mallet Island. And now Dante had lost the advantage of a head start. An advantage that the iguana had gained instead.

Dante put on a slight increase in speed and let his feet leave the ground as the Blade reached its target. Its claw came down and tore through flesh, though it was not the flesh it had expected.

"Gah...that freaking kills!" Dante muttered in annoyance, as he looked down at the scaly arm elbow-deep in his stomach. "Of course you realize, this means war." Dante told the demon. Then he reached up and completely turned the lizard's head around 360 degrees. "Prick."

Only after the Blade had begun to dissolve and Dante's wound had stitched itself back together, did Dante notice that the demon's left eye was shut. With an amazed shake of the head Dante turned and looked down at the shocked girl. "You know something? He must have really liked you." With that, he drew his guns and focused on the remaining demons. Now that he was out of the immediate frenzy of battle he could aim and safely dispatch his targets with no risk of harming the students.

And besides, he had no time for any more melee fighting anyway. With a few bursts, the cafeteria was safe and the kids could make it out on their own.

It was then that Dante realized something. He hadn't heard any other screams than the ones coming from this room. Dante bent down and picked up the frozen girl by his feet and took her outside to join her classmates.

"Hey! Is there anyone else inside?" Dante asked after setting the girl down. (She still refused to stand.) One Sophomore-looking boy spoke up. His voice was pretty strong considering everything. "It's a school-wide field trip today and tomorrow. Half the school went today. We were supposed to be headed out tomorrow."

"So there's no one else inside?" Dante asked, looking at the orange flames that seemed to be jetting out of every window in the school. "Well good, cause that makes things easy."

"Actually. I think Mrs. Jackson's class stayed behind!' Another kid said; a girl this time. "I remember cause my friend and I were talking about how much it sucked that she couldn't go..." the girl trailed off as Dante scowled.

"There's always a catch. Fine! Somebody call the fire department! I'm going back in to get the rest!" Dante told them before plunging back into the awaiting flames.

* * *

"You know, maybe I should've got directions first." Dante said still scowling. Pieces of the roof began to come down on him and Dante barely avoided getting pinned down under flaming wreckage. "Definitely should've gotten directions." Dante said under his breath, mentally kicking himself.

He was torn from his self pity by a collection of frightened voices in the room next to him. The door was blocked by rubble but since when is that ever a problem for the Son of Sparda? He raised a booted foot and kicked.

Some of the kids inside were unconscious, as the smoke was thick and getting thicker by the moment. "All of you get down!" The kids were quick to obey and Dante immediately shot out the glass in the windows to allow some oxygen to get in and some smoke to get out. Then he shot down all the bats in the area to prevent the creation of more fire.

Dante stepped up past the kids. "Stay down! I'm going to knock down the wall and then we'll have to jump through the fire out into the street!" Dante balled his rather sore right hand into a fist (again) and got ready to bust through whatever the hell it was that schools are made of.

"Ready! One, two, three!"

* * *

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